Asking for a ridiculously high salary—even when offered as a joke—can get you a much higher salary offer than if you stay within the typical salary range for a job, the Harvard Business Review suggests.

In a recent simulation, job candidates who jokingly said they'd like to earn $100,000 for an administrative assistant job were offered 9% more than those who said their previous salary level was $29,000. Todd J. Thorsteinson of the University of Idaho, the researcher, said:

In a negotiation, an initial offer-even one offered in jest-can serve as an "anchor," affecting the eventual outcome.

While this was just a simulation and ridiculous joking might not be appropriate for your job search or salary negotiations, especially in today's tight job market, starting on the higher end of a salary level when you know that the employer is interested in you may set this anchor for a higher salary. Thoughts? Photo by Ross Breadmore.